Despite my gruff appearance...I'm mostly a "sweet geek" ™ with a streak of Leo that comes out on occasion.

I follow politics daily. I am very socially liberal...but not quite on the tree-hugger side of things.

I follow the everything in moderation mantra.

I love chocolate, belgian beer, good wine and good tequila.

I watch sci-fi for the escapism, foreign/indy movies for the alternative perspective, and documentaries for the curiosity.

I don't follow, and rarely watch any kind of sporting event.

I love dancing to electronic music till the sun comes up (but its been waaay too long since I have).

I think about eating and sharing delicious food *all* the time. Sometimes I cook, sometimes I bake (pies n' such [in case you're also a baker and wondering : all-butter crust]).

I moved to the Bay Area to *grow* after spending most of my life in San Diego.

I make a formidable guacamole...good enough that when its time for us to break up...on your *reasons to not break up with him* list will be "his guacamole". The same goes for my popcorn.

I commute to SF every day...but really feel more at home in Oakland.

A note about *Burning Man*: Yes I've been and have had great times. No, it doesn't define me or my life.

What I’m doing with my life

Personally, trying to be a better person than I was yesterday....professionally, I'm a Software Engineer.

I’m really good at

Designing things that are often more idyllic than practical.

The first things people usually notice about me

My beard and my tall, gangly, ostrich-like grace.

Favorite books, movies, shows, music, and food

Books: I mostly read the internet which is really the only thing that satiates my constant curiosity about the world. If I did read books I'd probably read lots of science fiction and historical fantasy (yes, I realize that's an oxymoron).

Movies: the 80s version of Dune, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, most anything from Pedro Almodóvar or Jean-Pierre Jeunet.

I sometimes pick a a bottle of wine because it has a nice looking label.

You should message me if

you:=======

Are left of center politically. I know it sounds like an odd thing to desire a certain kind of politics in someone...but its not so much that I want to sit around and talk politics with you (though that's nice sometimes). It's really more that political views tell us a lot about how someone sees the world, how they see others...more importantly, how they treat others.

Like affection.

Enjoy talking about things that matter AND things that DONT matter.

Are not religious...into god is ok, spiritual is ok, church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster is ok too.

Are not homophobic (subjective, but here is a good rule of thumb: if you think marriage is something ONLY to be done between a man and a woman, don't bother replying, we probably would not get along). [I originally wrote this blurb when I wasn't living in the Bay Area....making this statement here {in the Bay Area context} now seems...unnecessary. Still, I'll leave it here for clarity about myself I suppose ]

Like (doesn't mind) getting a little dirty and sweaty sometimes when camping/hiking/etc.

Are open-minded about other cultures, ways of life. The funny thing about this statement, is people who are close-minded, often don't know (or admit) they are, so this statement probably has little effect in this context. Still, it makes me feel warm and fuzzy putting it down.